Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Thank God I got laid off

Because now I have my dream job

Sean Margolin
Sean Margolin

Before he was laid off in 2005, Sean Margolin worked 20 years for an electronics company. It took him about five minutes to decide what he was going to do next.

“I got my captain’s license, took a loan out for a boat, and became a fishing guide,” he said. “I’d been wanting to do this my whole life and when I lost my job I couldn’t wait to start my new life.”

Margolin charges $350 a person to take them out into La Jolla’s kelp beds, and he guarantees his client will catch a fish. He’s booked solid six months into the year, and while he doesn’t make a fortune, he loves going to work each day.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“I started fishing when I was six years old, and I know where the fish are,” he said. “I would do this for free, but my wife won’t let me.”

There are plenty of tests and hours of study to become a charter captain. But once you have the license you can operate almost any type of boat. Check out marinerslearninsystem.com for more information. The salary of charter boat captain increases with his experience and the company he works for, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. Captains on large charter boats can make well over $100,000 per year.

For those who want to get away from it all, there is fly fishing. San Diego’s rivers are not exactly filled with trout- or water for that matter- so you’ll have to move to Northern California, Montana, Wyoming, or Washington to really make some cash. Outdooru.com is a great site to learn about becoming a fly fisherman. Fly fishing guides who have what it takes can gross about $450 a day.

“You don’t do this job to get rich,” said Tom Beiersdorf of San Diego and Yellowstone, Montana. “I do it because I love the outdoors and love seeing others relax. Watching someone who sits in an office cubicle 10 hours a day catch a fish is part of my paycheck.”

Simply Hired estimates that the average salary for a professional fishing guide as of May 2012 is about $55,000 per year. Fly fishing guides make a bit more at $59,000 per year. The most in-demand guides can earn as much as $85,000 annually.

“When I used to drive to work in the morning I would drive the coast and dream about when I could fish next,” Margolin said. “Now I have my dream job. Thank God I got laid off!”

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego Dim Sum Tour, Warwick’s Holiday Open House

Events November 24-November 27, 2024
Sean Margolin
Sean Margolin

Before he was laid off in 2005, Sean Margolin worked 20 years for an electronics company. It took him about five minutes to decide what he was going to do next.

“I got my captain’s license, took a loan out for a boat, and became a fishing guide,” he said. “I’d been wanting to do this my whole life and when I lost my job I couldn’t wait to start my new life.”

Margolin charges $350 a person to take them out into La Jolla’s kelp beds, and he guarantees his client will catch a fish. He’s booked solid six months into the year, and while he doesn’t make a fortune, he loves going to work each day.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“I started fishing when I was six years old, and I know where the fish are,” he said. “I would do this for free, but my wife won’t let me.”

There are plenty of tests and hours of study to become a charter captain. But once you have the license you can operate almost any type of boat. Check out marinerslearninsystem.com for more information. The salary of charter boat captain increases with his experience and the company he works for, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. Captains on large charter boats can make well over $100,000 per year.

For those who want to get away from it all, there is fly fishing. San Diego’s rivers are not exactly filled with trout- or water for that matter- so you’ll have to move to Northern California, Montana, Wyoming, or Washington to really make some cash. Outdooru.com is a great site to learn about becoming a fly fisherman. Fly fishing guides who have what it takes can gross about $450 a day.

“You don’t do this job to get rich,” said Tom Beiersdorf of San Diego and Yellowstone, Montana. “I do it because I love the outdoors and love seeing others relax. Watching someone who sits in an office cubicle 10 hours a day catch a fish is part of my paycheck.”

Simply Hired estimates that the average salary for a professional fishing guide as of May 2012 is about $55,000 per year. Fly fishing guides make a bit more at $59,000 per year. The most in-demand guides can earn as much as $85,000 annually.

“When I used to drive to work in the morning I would drive the coast and dream about when I could fish next,” Margolin said. “Now I have my dream job. Thank God I got laid off!”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Raging Cider & Mead celebrates nine years

Company wants to bring America back to its apple-tree roots
Next Article

Could Supplemental Security Income house the homeless?

A board and care resident proposes a possible solution
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader